New jobless claims in New Mexico hold steady

The latest federal labor statistics show New Mexico has processed more than 146,000 claims for unemployment since mid-March.

That represents about 18% of the total workforce in the state that’s eligible for the unemployment insurance program.

The number of new applications submitted in New Mexico during the week ending May 16 showed almost no change from the number of applications submitted the previous week. However, it still represented a dramatic increase from the same time last year as New Mexico and the rest of the world grapple with economic fallout resulting from the coronavirus pandemic.